Mentored Education for Dissemination and Implementation Science (MEDIS) Program

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Abstract Chronic diseases are the leading causes of death and disability in the United States, and have the capacity to bankrupt the American healthcare system as drivers of the nation's $3.3 trillion in annual health care costs. Disparities in the burden of chronic disease are also evident among certain populations (e.g., racial/ethnic minority groups, individuals of lower socioeconomic status). Behavioral and social science research (BSSR) targeting lifestyle risk factors within context can successfully reduce chronic disease morbidity and mortality. The science of dissemination and implementation (D&I) aims to shorten the translation gap from discovery to impact of evidence-based interventions in real world community and clinical settings to benefit population health. Training the next generation of researchers in the field D&I will improve the adoption of BSSR and interventions that can effectively prevent and manage chronic disease. To address this priority, this R25 application proposes an innovative educational program entitled Mentored Education for Dissemination and Implementation Science (MEDIS), which will address a cross cutting need by providing researchers with advanced training in D&I competencies through a 5-day Summer short course offered annually, and combined with ongoing mentorship to enhance learning. MEDIS is significant because it will promote the D&I of BSSR in real world settings where evidence-based interventions exist but are not yet commonly applied, and where a large reduction in chronic disease morbidity and mortality is feasible if this knowledge was widely taken up into practice. The specific aims of this application are to: 1. Implement MEDIS to train researchers (Fellows) to facilitate the D&I of BSSR in the context of community and clinical settings to eliminate chronic disease disparities. To accomplish aim 1, we will: a) Implement a recruitment plan to identify a high-quality pool of diverse Fellows; b) Train Faculty mentors and match them with Fellows to foster ongoing mentoring in D&I research; and c) Conduct a Summer Course for Fellows to build competency in D&I research. 2. Evaluate MEDIS and track Fellows' career development. To accomplish aim 2, we will: a) Evaluate the Fellows in achieving D&I-related competencies, mentoring, and career progress; and b) Evaluate the Faculty for relevance and quality of presentations and mentoring ability. 3. Actively disseminate MEDIS components and support Fellows in capacity building activities at their institutions and with community partners. To accomplish aim 3, we will: a) Identify key audiences for dissemination; b) Conduct active dissemination; and c) Develop a train-the-trainer module for Fellows.